i was warned!!!!!BANANA BITES!

[stuart]

WOOOHOOO,MY STINGER ARRIVED AS EXPECTED......wait a second....this isn't a stinger......


it's a pos f22 raptor 3 channel worth 45 dollars....on the plus side,i called their customer service/sales dept and spoke to Jose. while on the phone i sent him these pictures and received an rma # to return it. i'll have to wait for the return label and mail it back to them. that will take weeks and then the new ordered stinger will take time to be shipped. the total price of the stinger shipped was $86....any other supplier was asking 70+ and then add the shipping. if the stinger was sitting on my worktable i would be giving banana a thumbs up.....this may be the beginning of a long Oct. will update the progress of banana's handling this order screwup and hope to only post positive things.

thanks for letting me vent,it's good to know these are just toys and not something deserving the full fury of any anger..lol....

[stevecooper]

Banana rama,,,They still in Biz??? amazing ,,, bubsteve

[stuart]

this is an update on the stinger order mix up. i have called the banana hobbies phone about 4 times...each time i spoke....thats right..spoke to customer service/sales[i always hit the sales extension # 1].each time i was at some point in the conversation put on hold for only a brief time[1 min+] and they returned with the information to answer my questions.

I've had 3 different people work on the issues ,with getting an rma,then after getting the rma they requested confirmation on my not wanting the f22 before sending a return shipping label which seems silly since my first call had some venting on my side of the call saying what a disappointment banana has as a record for customer service and how i want the f22 gone and the right order shipped asap!! i called back and they sent via email a label for me to copy which was by my request or they would have mailed it. [seems to me they should offer the label faxed or emailed as part of the return and save the stamp. really not an issue though as i was ups'ing the f22 today label or not.

they then emailed me to confirm my stingers color as being red or blue. i found this strange since the original order should be on their computers as red[need the color for flying,blue would be hard to see]. i emailed them my choice and received a immediate response of appreciation for the quick answer and they are processing my order.

when i received the return label via email i also got an explanation it would be going directly to the intended person who is waiting for it........,i truly believe Larry and Jose at banana trust me to be the honest person i am to send the f22 complete and not missing anything inside the box,but thats a risk on their part ,to trust people who might have taken everything out of the box to examine the f22 which i didn't do. it was and is in a great shipping box that now has bananas address written on the box with my rma # done written in broad magic marker when i thought i was shipping it on my own dime back to Calif.[keep in mind it wouldn't cost me the $16 i paid for shipping.] now i want to cover that somehow. if i was at work i would use brown paper tape. oh well.

lastly,Larry said i should be receiving the tracking # of the stinger Monday! if this happens i should see the stinger next week or early Oct where i would want to change the title of this thread to a more positive title. i truly believe Larry and Jose have done everything they could to expedite the resolve of the shipping error and i am hoping for the best!

another update will be forth coming in a week or sowhen the stinger arrives. if that happens...i will post this copy of our correspondence to dispel some really bad reputation they have and as of yet i cannot confirm on a new thread on rcg/rcu. it's only fair as the title of this thread may prove wrong in the long run.

[Bill G]

In all the years of my colorful past, I have never had an experience where I would have stuck a shipping label that says
STINGER
on it, and applied it to a box that says
F22
on it, with a graphic label designating F22 that is as big as the box.
Pretty clear what the box says here on the graphic below:
It's also clear that they seem to have a problem with this mistake, as it's been reported a number of times. What's not clear is why.

[Fishbonez]

Originally Posted by stuart

this is an update on the stinger order mix up. i have called the banana hobbies phone about 4 times...each time i spoke....thats right..spoke to customer service/sales[i always hit the sales extension # 1].each time i was at some point in the conversation put on hold for only a brief time[1 min+] and they returned with the information to answer my questions.

I've had 3 different people work on the issues ,with getting an rma,then after getting the rma they requested confirmation on my not wanting the f22 before sending a return shipping label which seems silly since my first call had some venting on my side of the call saying what a disappointment banana has as a record for customer service and how i want the f22 gone and the right order shipped asap!! i called back and they sent via email a label for me to copy which was by my request or they would have mailed it. [seems to me they should offer the label faxed or emailed as part of the return and save the stamp. really not an issue though as i was ups'ing the f22 today label or not.

they then emailed me to confirm my stingers color as being red or blue. i found this strange since the original order should be on their computers as red[need the color for flying,blue would be hard to see]. i emailed them my choice and received a immediate response of appreciation for the quick answer and they are processing my order.

when i received the return label via email i also got an explanation it would be going directly to the intended person who is waiting for it........,i truly believe Larry and Jose at banana trust me to be the honest person i am to send the f22 complete and not missing anything inside the box,but thats a risk on their part ,to trust people who might have taken everything out of the box to examine the f22 which i didn't do. it was and is in a great shipping box that now has bananas address written on the box with my rma # done written in broad magic marker when i thought i was shipping it on my own dime back to Calif.[keep in mind it wouldn't cost me the $16 i paid for shipping.] now i want to cover that somehow. if i was at work i would use brown paper tape. oh well.

lastly,Larry said i should be receiving the tracking # of the stinger Monday! if this happens i should see the stinger next week or early Oct where i would want to change the title of this thread to a more positive title. i truly believe Larry and Jose have done everything they could to expedite the resolve of the shipping error and i am hoping for the best!

another update will be forth coming in a week or sowhen the stinger arrives. if that happens...i will post this copy of our correspondence to dispel some really bad reputation they have and as of yet i cannot confirm on a new thread on rcg/rcu. it's only fair as the title of this thread may prove wrong in the long run.

That is pretty amazing they trusted you to send it to the corect person. Glad to know there is still some honest people out there. Thanks Stu. Wonder if that persaon got your Stinger? My curiosity would be kiling me to klnow. Anyhow I am keeping my fingers crossed for ya. and hopes you get the problem solved. I honestly believe that BH is doing their best to overcome the challenges of a bad rep. Maybe some day soon I will give them a try I have never used them because of their bad rep but with the bad and the ugly there has to be good somewhere. good luck and cant wait to see your posts in the the Stinger thread.

[Fishbonez]

Originally Posted by Bill G

In all the years of my colorful past, I have never had an experience where I would have stuck a shipping label that says
STINGER
on it, and applied it to a box that says
F22
on it, with a graphic label designating F22 that is as big as the box.
Pretty clear what the box says here on the graphic below:
It's also clear that they seem to have a problem with this mistake, as it's been reported a number of times. What's not clear is why.

A simple case of not paying attention to detail. Drives ya nutz sometimes or maybe the pheller doing the packing was smoking someting other than his cigarettes It is California...

[xmech2k]

Shipping from a customer to another customer?!?!? That doesn't help improve their image in my book. I checked out their site again recently after seeing Pete's newer 'grown-up' style in a video and thought they're going for a makeover. I wasn't impressed. Looks different, but still inaccurate info about the planes, everything (almost) is still great for beginners and experts alike, etc...

Though I will admit, I haven't ordered from them so I have no personal experience, just what I hear from the guys at the field, which was their prices are great, and if you get the right plane with all the right parts and no defects, great. But if you don't, (and they have) good luck!

[Slowjohn]

I'm interested in seeing how this turns out for sure. Hope you get your Stinger quickly.

Standing By,
SJ

[stuart]

update,i just sent the package on it's way to the new owner,i may be hearing from him/her in the next few days when the package arrives.......i forgot i had filled out a return form that gets shipped back to Calif with the rma #. it has my name,phone #,email...ect...ect.

this is where banana shouldn't have had a customer send a package for them to another customer.

i also would expect a company that makes as muchh money as banana does to offer added incentive for customers to go through the trouble to return mistakes made on their end. i sent banana a email regarding my displeasure that my info was sent by accident to the new recipient.

for what it's worth,I've heard stories of folks here at wattflyer ordering from companies with great reputations and receiving the wrong color plane.then getting the new one free[no returning the mistake]....i'm not asking for free but a nice discount off another order would show that banana cares to make their customers happy even thru bad experiences. let's see what happens Monday.i doupt any offer made will temp me back into the web of inconvence you go thru for an order...lol.

on the brighter side ,got one flight in today with the slick before the winds p/u to strong for the planes i brought to the field. went to hobby town to p/u covering for the uproar build nearing it's completion. all in all ,a good day.

[rcers]

I had a company do that once to me. I asked him if he had my permission to GIVE my personal details to another customer. He said no - I said don't you see any issues with that? He said no.

I have NEVER ordered anything from him again - or will I.

Mike

[Bill G]

Originally Posted by Slowjohn

I'm interested in seeing how this turns out for sure. Hope you get your Stinger quickly.

Standing By,
SJ

Should have already happened. Pete wants to make sure that Stuart does all the legwork to take care of Pete's mistake at BH, first verifying that the customer receives the package forwarded from Stuart at his time and expense. Only then will Pete finally ship Stuart the package that he ordered. They do work that way.

Originally Posted by stuart

update,i just sent the package on it's way to the new owner,i may be hearing from him/her in the next few days when the package arrives.......i forgot i had filled out a return form that gets shipped back to Calif with the rma #. it has my name,phone #,email...ect...ect.

this is where banana shouldn't have had a customer send a package for them to another customer.

WHAT?

Banana Hobby had you ship the incorrectly shipped package to another one of their customers for them.
Seriously, that's completely unacceptable.

Originally Posted by Fishbonez

A simple case of not paying attention to detail. Drives ya nutz sometimes or maybe the pheller doing the packing was smoking someting other than his cigarettes It is California...

All comedy aside, I really do get that impression of the place for some reason. Mistakes like this one simply are never made by people paying attention that care, even when the person's at a bit less than 100%. It literally is just about the simplest task there is: Match the label to the box.

These types of mistakes are as senseless as the monkey trying to pound the square block in the round hole.

[stevecooper]

Pete's been dishonest in many dealing's,, After telling a friend of mine for a few months he'd replace a Plane they had sent him (had a USED flight-pack in it that was broke and inoperative ) Only to say that His Boss said no and he was sorry,,,,,,,,,,,,,, He Owned Banana Hobbies!!!!!! Nuff said,, don't go there, Bubsteve

[TopSpin]

Originally Posted by stuart

update,i just sent the package on it's way to the new owner,i may be hearing from him/her in the next few days when the package arrives.......i forgot i had filled out a return form that gets shipped back to Calif with the rma #. it has my name,phone #,email...ect...ect.

this is where banana shouldn't have had a customer send a package for them to another customer.

i also would expect a company that makes as muchh money as banana does to offer added incentive for customers to go through the trouble to return mistakes made on their end. i sent banana a email regarding my displeasure that my info was sent by accident to the new recipient.

for what it's worth,I've heard stories of folks here at wattflyer ordering from companies with great reputations and receiving the wrong color plane.then getting the new one free[no returning the mistake]....i'm not asking for free but a nice discount off another order would show that banana cares to make their customers happy even thru bad experiences. let's see what happens Monday.i doupt any offer made will temp me back into the web of inconvence you go thru for an order...lol.

on the brighter side ,got one flight in today with the slick before the winds p/u to strong for the planes i brought to the field. went to hobby town to p/u covering for the uproar build nearing it's completion. all in all ,a good day.

Tell you what Stuart next time you should buy your planes from Hobby King. That way when they screw up you can wait until Lipo batteries are no longer useful before you get your antique replacement, assuming you ever get a replacement.

At least Banana fixed the problem within a week even if it was sort of a goofy way to do things.

I agree that having you ship the F-22 to someone other than the store is kind of wierd and I have to wonder why they did that but at least you got your stinger. FWIW the F-22 looked like a cool plane, more expensive too. Maybe you should have just kept it.

[xmech2k]

Originally Posted by TopSpin

Tell you what Stuart next time you should buy your planes from Hobby King. That way when they screw up you can wait until Lipo batteries are no longer useful before you get your antique replacement, assuming you ever get a replacement.

At least Banana fixed the problem within a week even if it was sort of a goofy way to do things.

I agree that having you ship the F-22 to someone other than the store is kind of wierd and I have to wonder why they did that but at least you got your stinger. FWIW the F-22 looked like a cool plane, more expensive too. Maybe you should have just kept it.

Either one of those examples is unacceptable and why you can always resort to calling your credit card company and filing a fraud claim if you get unacceptable service. (Fortunately, I've only had to resort to this once.) I have to wonder why you even had to drag in Hobby King into this. Did you have a bad experience with them?

Personally, I'm glad Stuart shared this with us, as I might have fallen for it myself, but now I'll know better. I've never heard of such a thing, and I'm amazed someone else here experienced it, too. A customer should never have to get all their personal info given to a total stranger like that.

[Bill G]

Originally Posted by xmech2k

Either one of those examples is unacceptable and why you can always resort to calling your credit card company and filing a fraud claim if you get unacceptable service. (Fortunately, I've only had to resort to this once.) I have to wonder why you even had to drag in Hobby King into this. Did you have a bad experience with them?

Maybe he brought it up for the purpose of comparison? I'm sure you've read the different forums Topspin is at and understand that he is yet another person who doesn't care for the countless reports of problems that they have. He's allowed to have that opinion, and it's irrelevant to whether or not he personally had a bad experience with them. Since questioning Topspin has furthered the discussion, I would say that bringing them up is quite relevant in this thread, as the two vendors mentioned are generally considered the top two in terms of customer complaints.

Irregardless, this calling people out and questioning them over their comments and opinions always seems to have a rhetorical agenda, such as asking questions rhetorically, and it always seems to happen whenever somebody mentions HobbyKing.

[dahawk]

I guess I'm one of the lucky ones. No issues with BH with 3 plane orders.I did have premature Esc failure and they replaced it right away. Never bought anything I would consider very risky. Want quick action ? Blog the story on BH'a Facebook page. Pete follows that .

-Hawk

[xmech2k]

Originally Posted by Bill G

Maybe he brought it up for the purpose of comparison? I'm sure you've read the different forums Topspin is at and understand that he is yet another person who doesn't care for the countless reports of problems that they have. He's allowed to have that opinion, and it's irrelevant to whether or not he personally had a bad experience with them. Since questioning Topspin has furthered the discussion, I would say that bringing them up is quite relevant in this thread, as the two vendors mentioned are generally considered the top two in terms of customer complaints.

Irregardless, this calling people out and questioning them over their comments and opinions always seems to have a rhetorical agenda, such as asking questions rhetorically, and it always seems to happen whenever somebody mentions HobbyKing.

I primarily read this and one other forum. I don't specifically recall reading anything from Topspin.

The part about 'calling him out' or 'rhetorical agenda', I knew someone would say that. The second I pressed the submit button, I wished I said 'why did you bring up another business...' I don't know how you read it, but I don't think I was calling out anyone, just curious if he had a bad experience with them. Maybe I should have put 'Either one of those examples of customer service...'. If you note, in my earlier post here I stated that I never ordered anything from BH, just heard other club members experiences with them, and therefore I'm just commenting on the customer service experience posted here. If anything, I thought Topspin might have had an agenda bringing another vendor into this, but now I get accused of having an agenda. It's a never ending spiral. And of course now we heard about that from you instead of Topspin, who may not appreciate you putting words in his mouth.

Please also note that I did not mention the name of the vendor I had to resort to a fraud complaint with, like RCers didn't mention the vendor he dealt with, as I didn't want to drag the OP's thread off the subject at hand.

So now go ahead and take your last shot at me to finish this. Don't worry, I'll read it, but won't respond so we can get back to the OP's topic.

[TopSpin]

Originally Posted by xmech2k

I primarily read this and one other forum. I don't specifically recall reading anything from Topspin.

The part about 'calling him out' or 'rhetorical agenda', I knew someone would say that. The second I pressed the submit button, I wished I said 'why did you bring up another business...' I don't know how you read it, but I don't think I was calling out anyone, just curious if he had a bad experience with them. Maybe I should have put 'Either one of those examples of customer service...'. If you note, in my earlier post here I stated that I never ordered anything from BH, just heard other club members experiences with them, and therefore I'm just commenting on the customer service experience posted here. If anything, I thought Topspin might have had an agenda bringing another vendor into this, but now I get accused of having an agenda. It's a never ending spiral. And of course now we heard about that from you instead of Topspin, who may not appreciate you putting words in his mouth.

Please also note that I did not mention the name of the vendor I had to resort to a fraud complaint with, like RCers didn't mention the vendor he dealt with, as I didn't want to drag the OP's thread off the subject at hand.

So now go ahead and take your last shot at me to finish this. Don't worry, I'll read it, but won't respond so we can get back to the OP's topic.

OK, instead of a shot I'll offer this. I don't think Banana perpetrated fraud.

Either one of those examples is unacceptable and why you can always resort to calling your credit card company and filing a fraud claim if you get unacceptable service.

I think they made a mistake plain and simple. The way they went about rectifying the mistake was a bit strange but they did solve the problem. I would have been put off by them asking me to mail it to another customer but that's no longer important at this point.

The important thing to me is that the OP was "on the phone" with Banana employees. They actually have a phone number that you can call and talk with someone right here in the US of A.

Regardless of their reputation that's still way better than any Hong Kong based RC dealer I can think of.

So rather than take a shot, I shared my opinion, how about that.

[stuart]

hey gang,I've been following along and thought you all should know....i have yet to get the tracking # of my order to be shipped so things are still on hold for a final verdict on the overall outcome.larry of banana said he would try for tonight to ship the stinger,i'll give him a couple of days before getting critical.at least i know they do answer the sales extension...,i never used customer service ex....lol.

i want to go on record as agreeing this was a mistake,it happens. I've made some beauts in my day and some worse than a toy being shipped to the wrong person. yes things could have been handled differently,but life goes on.

as far as hobbyking goes,I'm all for buying certain items from them and the USA warehouse ships orders the same week i get the product delivered to my door. i can also return items to the same location. no more long distance shopping if it's in stock in the USA.

i think we all have favorite online stores we often share with others like hurc. but thats not the purpose of this thread. it began as a grip and may end in a positive review of banana trying to clear up a bad reputation.

this is how i hope my entries end anyway. will keep all posted with the finial results. gotta get to doing something more important,covering a project in the works.

[kenchiroalpha]

Hi Stu
That stinks, You have my best wishes that you get it settled to your satisfaction swiftly and easily.
Take care dear friend
Yours Hank

[xmech2k]

Originally Posted by TopSpin

OK, instead of a shot I'll offer this.

I was talking to BillG.

[dahawk]

Stu,
The only thing I don't understand about this episode is : What's the quid pro quo? as in: I'll ship the F-22 to the other customer but you'll send me the correct model- plus ??? What are they doing to make up for this fiasco? I'd say at the very least to include some lipos or something. It will all get sorted out somehow but what a PITA!

Wish they were all like HURC and Value Hobby. Toysonics has beeen good on the little Jpowers warbirds. Just ordered another Rare Bear( unbeleivably fast) yesterday and it shipped from California today.

-Hawk

[TopSpin]

Originally Posted by dahawk

Stu,
The only thing I don't understand about this episode is : What's the quid pro quo? as in: I'll ship the F-22 to the other customer but you'll send me the correct model- plus ??? What are they doing to make up for this fiasco? I'd say at the very least to include some lipos or something. It will all get sorted out somehow but what a PITA!

Wish they were all like HURC and Value Hobby. Toysonics has beeen good on the little Jpowers warbirds. Just ordered another Rare Bear( unbeleivably fast) yesterday and it shipped from California today.

-Hawk

I saw one of the Rare Bears just the other day and I think I might order one next week. Looks like a very fast little plane.

[dahawk]

TopSpin,

If you're feeling the need for speed, this is it. It will fly circles around all my edf's. On 4S, the Rare Bear will easily exceed 100mph. Unfotunately, I had a mishap on Sunday. A Mid-air collision with a club member's new little profile 3D gasser. I was just doing circuits getting her trimmed and he came from above. I was at about 1/4 throttle and it was moving pretty good. Never had a chance for a speed run but this baby will zoom. Lost my my v-stab and motor in the thick thorny brush. He was able to land but there was damage to his monocoat and balsa ribs. Smack ! Pow ! What an impact. Holy smokes !
Man, was he pissed. Packed up and left before I could give him a new HK Yak-54 ARF I won in a raffle/fundraiser on Saturday. Wouldn't even help me look for my lost parts and pieces. Never found them.

Just ordered a new one from Toysonics.The ARF version without servos or esc. Includes motor, horns, rods, airframe-$75.00 shipped to DFW. Takes 8g-9g servos and 30amp esc.

BH has them also but they don't seem real popular on this thread- LOL

-Hawk

[xmech2k]

Aha! I didn't recognize the names as I'm not that fixated on this stuff, but I got clued into looking into it. I'm already famous on another site for sharing my bad experience with another vendor. Guess who. It's a fun read where I even get accused of being someone else that uses a lot of usernames at once to bash that company!

http://rctruth.com/index.php?topic=991.0

Stuart, I sincerely apologize that this got dragged into your thread. I'm trying not to derail it! Hopefully you'll get this issue resolved. I didn't think BH commited fraud in what they did. I only meant if a company insists you do something like that and you don't want to in order to protect your privacy, and they leave you no choice, your credit card company can help. And that dept is called the fraud dept.